Paul, who is also a capable batter, was supposed to be picked in the New Zealand A squads for the Top End T20s and one-dayers in Australia, but missed the cut with injury.
Multiple injuries have stalled Paul’s progress right from his Under-19 days, but New Zealand see potential in both his bowling and batting, and continue to invest in him. Prior to the New Zealand A tour of Australia, Paul visited the Super Kings Academy in Chennai as part of a High Performance camp along with newly contracted Black Cap Matt Fisher and Max Chu, under Graeme Aldridge, the NZC High Performance bowling coach.
Paul has played just five Plunket Shield games and 11 white-ball matches for Canterbury since making his debut for the team in November 2023. Apart from injuries, the presence of Matt Henry, Jamieson, O’Rourke and Foulkes has limited his opportunities in the XI. But with the senior quicks set to be managed carefully for the home series against India and then the four-match Test tour of Australia, Paul could get a more consistent run at Canterbury – and perhaps a crack at India A – in the upcoming season. Ahead of the home summer, Paul has prioritised his fitness.
“Yeah, injuries are definitely tough,” Paul told Cricinfo in Chennai in June. “A few freak injuries I suppose at times, but the message I keep going back to is just focusing on what I can do to keep improving and keep working hard in the gym with the trainer and just hope it comes together at the right time. The injuries just sometimes happen, unfortunately, and there’s no point comparing [yourself] to other people or feeling sorry for yourself. I think it’s just an attitude more than anything.
“The goal for me is to see myself in all formats for the Canterbury side, and hopefully string a full season together as an allrounder and see where that gets me. I suppose I’m still at an age where I’m still learning exactly what my game looks like, batting and bowling-wise, and I’ll keep trying to score as many runs as I can and bowl as fast as I can and see what can happen.”
“We had two finals and felt like we were playing really good cricket and had a really good team led by Henry Nicholls,” Paul said. “Those [knockout games] are so hard to win. I would have liked to have played more in the Plunket Shield, especially that last game, but to be a part of any part of it is pretty special.”
With experienced Black Caps such as Nicholls and Henry in the Canterbury mix, Paul doesn’t have to look outside for inspiration.
“When I was 18, I hadn’t spent much time around the top group and Matt Henry came and gave me a message that bowling is bowling at any level and just told me to back myself,” Paul said. “It was something he didn’t have to do that really calmed me and made me realise that I could go ahead and play. Yeah, that was definitely something I’ll never forget and hope that I can pass on to someone else at the debuts for us in the future.
“Henry Nicholls has been such a special player for us. Learning off him has been absolute gold. Fortunately, I’ve had a few partnerships with him.”
As Paul prepares to take the next step in his Canterbury career, he hopes to draw from his experiences in Chennai and his hit-out against the West Indians in a tour match in Lincoln last summer.
“It’s [about] the subtle changes, and it’s [about] the ability to read the bowler a little bit better and getting used to a ball that’s turning,” Paul said. “I suppose we don’t face that many variety of spinners back home in first-class cricket. Each team has one spinner, and you know exactly what he’s going to do, so you don’t have to play around with much, whereas here there’s a massive variability from pitches and bowlers that it really makes you think about what your spin game looks like whereas at home it’s actually quite simple, usually.
“It was cool to get those runs [91] and face [Kemar Roach]. Grateful to have got the opportunity to put a score together. You obviously don’t get to bat too much when you’re batting at No.6 and further down. But I take both my batting and bowling equally seriously.”
A fit and firing Paul will add greater depth to New Zealand’s pool of seam allrounders along with Kristian Clarke, Josh Clarkson and Muhammad Abbas.
Deivarayan Muthu is a senior sub-editor at Cricinfo